The Los Angeles Clippers were driven to win for James Harden against the Philadelphia 76ers on Wednesday.
With James Harden returning to Philadelphia on Wednesday night for the first time since his surprise departure in October, the Los Angeles Clippers attempted to ignore the drama that was brewing and instead concentrated on taking care of business and getting back on track.
Still, the hostile audience could not be completely ignored. While Harden has been in similar situations previously, having played for several clubs over his career, the Clippers wanted to be as supportive as possible.
Paul George has kind words for James Harden
Harden’s tenure with the Sixers ended prematurely. After signing a one-plus-one contract two summers ago, Harden exercised his player option for the 2023-2024 NBA season. However, he did it without intending to compete with the Sixers. Instead, he wanted to lock up his salary and join the Clippers via trade.
Paul George said,
“It was no conversation [before the game about it],”
“We’ve all gone through it. It’s always bitter sweet, and it’s always going to be bad blood when a player decides to play elsewhere. That was his decision and we got his back through the process.” “It was one versus 20,000,”
“We got his back. We got to be a support system, and we got to pick him up and lift him, and I thought we did that. We were there for him to try to make it as easy as possible for him to kind of drown out the noise.”
It took months for Harden to have his request granted. While it wasn’t a perfect divorce, Harden’s patience resulted in a relocation to the West just three games into the regular season. Harden predicted a tough audience on Wednesday. While he seemed taken aback by the hostile feedback he received, he was not surprised. Harden thrived under pressure because he was prepared for what lay ahead of him.